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Video game:Mario's Time Machine

1994

The Strong National Museum of Play

The Strong National Museum of Play
Rochester , United States

Mario is the most popular video game franchise of all time, selling over 260 million games worldwide. The character Mario appears in over 200 games on every Nintendo console ever made, and in the 1990s, a survey discovered more children recognized Mario than Mickey Mouse. While the Mario series mainly features platform adventures, often involving the safe rescue of Princess Peach, it also includes role-playing, puzzle, racing, and educational games. The franchise further includes television shows, a live-action movie, comics, and promotional materials. Created by Shigeru Miyamoto in 1981, Mario first appeared as the protagonist Jumpman in Donkey Kong. As his name suggests, the character completed levels by jumping over barrels and climbing ladders to rescue the Lady kidnapped by Donkey Kong. In certain advertisements, Jumpman was named Mario, after the landlord of Nintendo of America's offices, and the name stuck. In 1985, Miyamoto produced the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game Super Mario Bros. The game takes place in the mythical Mushroom kingdom and stars Mario as he attempts to save Princess Peach from an antagonistic, anthropomorphized turtle named Bowser. Similar gameplay, reoccurring characters and power-ups link the games of the main Mario series. In 1993, Nintendo released Mario's Time Machine for the Microsoft Disc Operating System (MS-DOS). The game begins when Bowser creates a time machine, known as the Timulator, to travel through history and steal numerous artifacts. Mario must venture to numerous periods in history in order to reclaim the items Bowser stole. The game is significant for being an edutainment title, meaning that it was designed primarily to teach children. Mario's Time Machine sold under a million copies, but it served as a valuable tool for education.

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  • Title: Video game:Mario's Time Machine
  • Date Created: 1994
  • Location: USA
  • Subject Keywords: electronic game, video game
  • Type: PC Games
  • Medium: printed paper, plastic
  • Object ID: 109.14189
  • Credit Line: Gift of Warren Buckleitner
The Strong National Museum of Play

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